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We Defend Assault Civil Forfeiture Driving Drug Serious Crime Sexual Assault Theft & Fraud Weapons Charges

Vancouver Criminal Defence Lawyers

Dedicated. Experienced. Proven Results.

Vancouver based criminal defence lawyers, Mines & Company have, since 1993, maintained a proven record of success defending criminal offences, including assault charges, driving charges, drug charges, serious crimes charges, sexual assault charges, theft and fraud charges, and weapons charges.

Michael Mines, Ian Gauthier and Patrick Johnston are dedicated to helping their clients obtain the best possible outcomes in every case. Our lawyers are focused solely on criminal law, civil forfeiture, and Motor Vehicle Act defence. We regularly appear in courts throughout Metro Vancouver and the rest of British Columbia. We’ve conducted cases in Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec, as well as the Yukon Territory.

We believe that great communication is the key to every successful case. From initial consultation to extensive trial preparation, we are committed to answering your questions, addressing your concerns and keeping you informed. We understand that to be successful, we must work hard to understand every detail of your case. We will listen to you. We will explore every possible defence. We will prepare sound legal arguments and advance them in court on your behalf. We still strive to communicate your circumstances and your story to police, Crown prosecutors and to the Court.

Recent Successes

R. v. D.M. – Vancouver Provincial Court

Charges: Assault (domestic). Reduced to Peace Bond.
Issue: Given the rehabilitative steps we guided our client through, whether it was in the public interest to proceed with a criminal prosecution.
Result: Mr. Mines was able to persuade Crown counsel to stay the criminal charges  upon our client entering into a Peace Bond with a 12 month "no contact" order. No criminal record.

R. vs. M.H. – Vancouver Provincial Court

Charges: Assault (domestic). Reduced to Peace Bond.
Issue: Given the rehabilitative steps we guided our client through, whether it was in the public interest to proceed with a criminal prosecution.
Result: Mr. Mines was able to persuade Crown counsel to stay the criminal charges  upon our client entering into a Peace Bond with a 12 month "no contact" order. No criminal record.

R. vs. B.H. – North Vancouver Provincial Court

Charges: Assault (domestic).
Issue: Given the rehabilitative steps we were able to guide our client through, whether there remained a public interest in continuing with the prosecution.
Result: Mr. Gauthier was able to provide information about our client to Crown counsel which ultimately led to Crown entering a stay of proceedings. No criminal record.

R. vs. M.A. – Non Academic Misconduct Investigation

Charges: Sexual harassment.
Issue: Whether our client's behaviour amounted to "sexual harassment" as defined by the university's conduct policy.
Result: Mr. Gauthier was able to prepare our client for the University's hearing and, upon hearing all of the evidence, the University ruled that our client had not engaged in sexual harassment or any behaviour that contravened the institution's policies.

R. vs. Y.Z. – Richmond Provincial Court

Charge: Attempted Murder (reduced to assault with a weapon). Issue: Given the circumstances of the event and given our client's mental health condition, whether our client truly had the intention to kill the complainant. Result: Mr. Gauthier was able to provide medical/psychological information to Crown counsel and, ultimately, was able to persuade Crown to proceed on the lesser offence of assault with a weapon and to make a joint recommendation to the court for a conditional discharge, rather than the lengthy jail sentence they were originally seeking.  After hearing Mr. Gauthier's submissions, the Court granted our client the discharge. No criminal conviction. No jail.

R. vs. E.M. – Vancouver Provincial Court

Charges: Assault x2 (Reduced to Peace Bond).
Issue: Given the potential for self-defence in this case, whether it was appropriate for the criminal prosecution to continue.
Result: Mr. Mines was able to provide information to Crown counsel which resulted in Crown's decision to proceed with a Peace Bond rather than the criminal charges. No criminal record.

R. v. G.K. – Fort St. John Provincial Court

Charge: Theft/ Fraud Over $5000 (from employer).
Issue: Whether Crown could prove the alleged $300,000 offence and, given the rehabilitative steps that we were able to guide our client through, whether a jail sentence was necessary.
Result: Mr. Gauthier was able to persuade Crown counsel that they could only prove that our client was responsible for a $74,000 theft. Further, despite the breach of trust, in this case, Mr. Gauthier was able to persuade Crown counsel to seek a conditional sentence, rather than jail. After hearing Mr. Gauthier's submissions, the court sentenced our client to a 2 year conditional sentence. No jail.

R. vs. C.Y. – Richmond Provincial Court

Charges: Assault with a weapon ( reduced to Peace Bond).
Issue: Given the rehabilitative steps we were able to guide our client through, whether it was in the public interest to proceed with the criminal prosecution.
Result: Mr. Mines was able to persuade Crown counsel to allow our client to resolve this matter with a s. 810 Recognizance (Peace Bond) for a period of 12 months. Stay of proceedings on the criminal charge. No criminal record.

R. vs. F.K. – Vancouver Provincial Court

Charges: Theft and Fraud Over $5000 (from employer).
Issue: Whether the pre-charge delay of 3.5 years would reduce the sentence in this $215,000 employee fraud case.
Result: Mr. Mines was able to persuade the trial judge and Crown counsel that there was merit to our application for a judicial stay of proceedings based on our client's inability to properly defend the charges due to a delay of about 4 years in getting the charges approved. Notwithstanding this breach of trust, Mr. Mines was able to negotiate a plea arrangement in which our client received a 2 year conditional sentence order with a 10 pm curfew for 12 months. No monies were ordered to be repaid. No jail.

R. vs. M.P. – Abbotsford Police Investigation

Charges: Uttering Threats.
Issue: Whether it was in the public interest to proceed with a criminal prosucution.
Result: Mr. Gauthier was able to provide information to Crown and to ultimately persuade Crown counsel to not approve any charge in this case. No charge approves. No criminal record.

R. vs. J.H. – Abbotsford Provincial Court

Charge: Failing to stop at an accident resulting in bodily harm.
Issue: Given the circumstances of the offence, our client's background and his extreme remorse, whether a jail sentence was warranted.
Result: Mr. Gauthier was ble to direct our client through a course of psychological counselling and was able to persuade Crown counsel to agree to a non-custodial sentence. After hearing Mr. Gauthier's submissions, the Court sentenced our client to a 12 month conditional sentence. No jail.

R. vs. Q.G. – Vancouver Provincial Court

Charges: Theft Over $5000 (from employer).
Issue: Whether Crown counsel had sufficient evidence to meet the charge approval standard.
Result: Mr. Mines was able to persuade Crown counsel that important evidence would be missing from a cenrtal witness and to not approve any charges. No criminal record.
View all

We serve Metro Vancouver

and all of British Columbia.

We have over 35 years of courtroom experience.

Michael Mines, Ian Gauthier and Patrick Johnston have a combined total in excess of 35 years’ experience conducting criminal trials. Their trial strategies and courtroom skills are enhanced by Mr. Mines’ past experience doing Crown prosecution work. Michael, Ian and Patrick take great pride in the professional relationships they have built over the years with Crown prosecutors, judges and other defence lawyers. The firm has earned a reputation as being highly professional, ethical and dedicated to our clients.

Mines & Company has conducted over 4,000 client matters over the years. This extensive criminal law experience has given us the depth of knowledge to assess our cases before they get to court. In essence, once we understand the issues of a particular case, we will be able to provide advice as to the probable outcome. Where appropriate, our lawyers will strongly advocate for a successful resolution of charges prior to your trial. Our firm grasp of the facts and the law, coupled with our excellent advocacy skills often allow us to negotiate a resolution that is favourable to our client. We will always strive to “control the outcome” of our case through a successful plea negotiation without the necessity of a trial. However, when we are called upon to argue a case in court – whether at trial or at a sentencing hearing, we find that our excellent preparation and courtroom advocacy pays off. The vast majority of our clients’ cases are resolved favourably.

We defend your rights and freedoms.

Our lawyers work tirelessly to defend your rights. We pride ourselves in fighting to uphold the Charter principles that guarantee Canadians freedom from unreasonable and unlawful police actions. We are dedicated to upholding the values enshrined in the Charter, including:

  • The right to be treated in accordance with principles of fundamental justice;
  • The right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure;
  • The right to be free from arbitrary detention and arrest;
  • The right upon detention or arrest to be informed of the reasons thereof and the right to contact counsel without delay;
  • The right to be tried within a reasonable time; and
  • The right to not be subjected to any cruel or unusual punishment.

Where appropriate, we will apply to the court to have any evidence obtained through a Charter breach excluded from the trial process.

Assault, Drug, Theft and Driving charges

Mines and Company represents people charged with assault (including domestic); drug trafficking; theft; fraud; sex assault; weapons; and driving (including impaired) offences. We appear regularly in all Metro Vancouver courts as well as courts throughout the rest of British Columbia. We have over 35 years experience and have, over the years, achieved an impressive record of success. Our lawyers work tirelessly to defend our client’s rights. We pride ourselves in fighting to uphold the Charter principles that guarantee Canadians freedom from unlawful and unreasonable police actions.

Start with a free consultation.

If you are being investigated by police or if you’ve been charged with a criminal or driving offence, don’t face the problem alone. Being accused of an offence is stressful. The prospects of a criminal record or jail sentence can be daunting. Even if you think there is no defence, we may be able to help. To schedule a free initial consultation with one of our Vancouver lawyers, contact us now.

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